Police capture another ‘Crime Stoppers’ armed robber

In November, East Portland News presented a story featuring three outer East Portland crimes, committed by armed robbers. It looks like another crook is now behind bars …

The armed robber of this Century 16 Theater on the day before Thanksgiving was one of the three stories in the Crime Stoppers trilogy.

Story and photos by David F. Ashton
After three different outer East Portland businesses were stuck up by armed robbers, East Portland News ran a story in late November, 2012, asking for the public’s help in capturing the criminals.

> CLICK HERE to open that story.

In January, we told how alert Portland Police Bureau (PPB) East Precinct officers had busted the man who stole merchandise from Kohl’s Gateway store, and threatened Loss Prevention officers with a knife, trying to make an escape. [CLICK HERE to see that story.]

A security camera captures the man Robbery Detectives dubbed “Dopey the Bandit” giving the terrified ticket seller a look at his handgun, at in the Century 16 Theaters’ lobby.

On the day before Thanksgiving last year, a man came into the lobby of outer East Portland’s Century 16 Theaters on SE 82^nd Avenue in the Lents neighborhood, making it clear he wasn’t there to see a movie.

The man flashed a gun in his waste band, grabbed cash from the ticket seller, and dashed out the door.

Some said then that the armed thief ran off, without leaving police a clue.

But, as it turns out, PPB Robbery Division detectives were gathering plenty of clues about the man they’d dubbed “Dopey the Bandit”.

“Dopey the Bandit” leaves clues – such as looking up at this theater lobby security camera.

Detectives now suspect that “Dopey the Bandit” is linked to as many as eleven armed robberies, dating back to November 8 when he allegedly started his crime spree – by robbing the Value Village store on SE 82nd Avenue, just north of SE Foster Road.

The arrest in the case came outside a 7-Eleven Store in Milwaukie, when Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office deputies collared 43-year-old Bradley John Kehm at 2:45 a.m. on January 10.

“Kehm was nicknamed ‘Dopey the Bandit’ after numerous Portland area robberies,” said PPB Public Information Officer Sgt. Pete Simpson. “Kehm used a replica firearm, or implied that he had a firearm, in many of the robberies.”

The robberies outer East Portland include:

November 8 – Value Village, at 5050 SE 82nd Avenue.
November 14 – Goodwill, at 9015 SE Powell Boulevard.
November 14 – Dotty’s, at 11926 SE Division Street.
December 10 – Fred Meyer, at 5035 SE 82nd Avenue.
December 12 – Subway, at 1720 NE 122nd Avenue.
December 31 – Bank of America, at 24150 SE Stark Street.
January 5 – Unitus Credit Union, at 1052 SE 96th Avenue.

43-year-old Bradley John Kehm is accused of multiple robberies. MCDC booking photo

“Robbery Detectives have linked Kehm to 11 robberies,” Simpson revealed. “Four of these robberies are financial institutions, and Federal charges are pending against him.”

With his combined bail set at $2,250,000, Kehm remains lodged in the Multnomah County Inverness Jail.

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